A dusty pinwheel nebula around the massive star WR 104

摘要: Wolf-Rayet (WR) stars are luminous massive blue thought to be immediate precursors the supernova terminating their brief lives. The existence of dust shells around such has been enigmatic since discovery some 30 years ago; intense radiation field from star should inimical survival. Although dust-creation models, including those involving interacting stellar winds a companion star, have put forward, high-resolution observations required understand this phenomena. Here we present resolved images outflow WR 104, obtained with novel imaging techniques, revealing detail on scales corresponding about 40 AU at star. Our maps show that forms spatially confined stream following precisely linear (or Archimedian) spiral trajectory. Images taken two separate epochs clear rotation period 220 +/- days. Taken together, these findings prove binary is responsible for creation circumstellar dust, while plume makes 104 prototype new class nebulae unique wind systems.